Falling tree kills Passaic man during Mother's Day BBQ

A celebration turned tragic Sunday when part of a tree fell in the backyard of 375 Paulison Ave. in Passaic, killing at least one person and injuring at least a half dozen others during a Mother's Day celebration.
Kevin R. Wexler/NorthJersey.com

A celebration Sunday ended in death when part of a tree fell in the backyard of 375 Paulison Ave. in Passaic.(Photo: Kevin R. Wexler/NorthJersey.com)

PASSAIC — A man was killed and six others were injured after lightning struck a tree and a limb fell into a backyard during a Mother's Day barbecue on Paulison Avenue.

Lightning hit the tree at 4:58 p.m., causing a tree limb to fall in the backyard of 375 Paulison Ave., where a family was having a barbecue, Lt. Jonathan Schaer said.

"It's an act of God, as unfortunate as it is," Schaer said.

The event was a family barbecue celebrating a birthday and Mother’s Day.

The 28-year-old man died from his injures. Schaer said his name was being withheld pending family notification.

“As fast as the storm came and left, it left lasting marks on our city,” Mayor Hector Lora said.

Lora said the man was at the party with his wife and two children. His wife is also hospitalized. The Passaic man doesn't live at the Paulison Avenue address, but lives close by.

No children were injured during the incident, but just before the storm, children were playing in the area, Lora said.

Emergency personnel in the backyard of 375 Paulison Ave. in Passaic after a tree limb fell, killing at least one person and injuring a half-dozen others, during a Mother's Day celebration on Sunday.(Photo: Kevin R. Wexler/NorthJersey.com)

Lora and Councilman Terrence Love said they were both outside right before the storm, which was sudden and last only minutes.

"We are a community in shock and mourning from the loss of a resident on a day we celebrate families and mothers," Lora said. "Continue to pray and continue to support the family."

Lora was in the area at the time and arrived at the house minutes after the lightning strike. He arrived at the hospital with the family. He said the city is connecting the family with resources to help them with processing information and planning the next steps, such as funeral arrangements.

The lightning strike was part of a fast-moving storm that uprooted trees and caused power lines to fall. Damage was reported from Ho-Ho-Kus to Passaic. In Passaic, other trees fell, including one on Pearl Street that damaged five vehicles and one on Carleton Place and Main Street that caused a power outage.

Rain and isolated thunderstorms with estimated wind gusts of 50 to 60 miles per hour came through the area around 4:30 p.m. and lasted about an hour.

"The main impact with the storms that came was the strong wind gusts," National Weather Service Meteorologist Brian Ciemnecki said.

The storms developed in upstate New York and came down across the region.

A woman is shown as she looks towards 375 Paulison Ave. in Passaic. During a backyard celebration a tree fell, killing at least one person and injuring at least a half dozen others, Sunday, May 14, 2017. (Photo: Kevin R. Wexler/NorthJersey.com)

"It was a sunny day," Ciemnecki said. "It probably caught a lot of people off-guard."

Five people were taken to St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center and one was transported to St. Mary's Hospital from the barbecue in Passaic.

The victims' injuries ranged from critical to a release and a follow-up with their own doctors, Lora said. One of the adults was released but then returned after pain came back.

What appeared to be a 16-foot limb broke off from a tree that was taller than the house. A table was left with sodas on it. A tent was set up in the backyard.

The National Weather Service also received numerous reports of damage in the area from trees.

Saturday's heavy rains contributed to the number of trees that fell, according to AccuWeather meteorologist Danielle Knittle. "Because of the saturated ground, the winds didn't have to be nearly as strong," she said.

Knittle said the warm weather earlier on Sunday along with low pressure in the area over the Northeast also helped create an "unstable atmosphere" for the storm, which came in quickly.

In Rutherford, three trees came down, along with electric poles, police Sgt. Jeff Wilkinson said.

Trees fell on Maple Street and Raymond and Wilson avenues around 4:45 p.m. There were no injuries reported on Maple and Raymond, where trees fell on houses. Minimal damage was caused to the houses, which were tstill habitable.

Significant damage was caused to electric poles on Wilson Avenue. There was limited power in the area and at least a dozen houses reporting outages, according to Wilkinson.